Amazon says Kindle holding its own against tablets

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc said sales of its Kindle e-reader were strong over the holiday season amid competition from devices such as Apple Inc's iPad, a computer tablet that also has e-reader capabilities.

Amazon, which has a policy of not divulging exact sales figures for the Kindle and digital books, said the most recent version of the Kindle was its best-selling product ever.

"We're seeing that many of the people who are buying Kindles also own an LCD tablet," Chief Executive Jeff Bezos said in a statement.

Analysts have said e-readers such as the Kindle and Barnes & Noble Inc's Nook can withstand competition from tablets among readers who prefer a device made specifically for reading.

"Customers report using their LCD tablets for games, movies and Web browsing and their Kindles for reading," Bezos said.

Amazon, the world's largest online retailer, said sales of digital books on its Kindle broke a company record on Christmas.

Several Barnes & Noble locations reporting selling out of the Nook this weekend.

Amazon shares were down $1.42, or 0.8 percent, at $181.16 in morning trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market.